Like A Tree in the Meadow Wind
by mooms
Summary: Draco and Ginny escapes the harsh reality for a few brief moments. For a few precious hours they knew - like a tree in the meadow wind, their love would bend and withstand the war.
1. Bittersweet Escape

**Chapter 1: Bittersweet Escape**

_Have you seen the sunlight pouring through her hair?_

_And felt her warm mouth on you in the summer's air _

"Come and get me!"

Ginny shrieked at the top of her lungs and tried to run faster. Her fiery locks accented with the rays of the setting sun, casting a splendid halo around her head.

It was a lovely, breezy afternoon and she and Draco decided to secretly meet on a hill near Hogsmeade.

They have not seen one another in more than a year. The second Great War lasted far longer than anyone ever expected. There was so little joy and laughter to be had. The world has turned upside in a span of one year – men dying, women grieving. As the days flew by, more children were orphaned. People grew hungrier, wearier as each second passed them by.

In the darkest of times, they have found solace in one another's arms, found hope in the letters they exchanged.

They have found strength in one another's love.

The fact that they belonged to the opposite sides of the battlefield was unimportant to both of them.

Now all Draco and Ginny wanted was to make the most of the short time that they could be together. It would only be a matter of hours before Draco would feel his mark burn, only a couple of hours before Ginny would be called back to the hospital.

But their stand in the war and their duties to their causes were not in their minds. They would savor each moment they would spend together, leave reality far behind for a brief time.

Escape.

"You won't get far, Red," Draco called out, laughing, his black robes flowing behind him as he followed Ginny to the top of the hill. "I'll be there in a heartbeat." And he began to increase his speed.

But he was impatient. It's been too long since he held her in his arms.

"Oh, sod it!" he decided to quit running and cut the chase short. In a soft popping sound, he apparated right behind Ginny.

"Hah!" he yelled in triumph and pulled Ginny to him. "I told you I'll be here in a heartbeat." He kissed her cheek and heartily chuckled.

"Ah!" Ginny cried in surprise as her eyes widened. "How dare you cheat!" She giggled as she felt him kiss her. She tried to disentangle herself from Draco and tried to resume the childish chase, but she lost her balance and fell on the soft blanket of grass, taking Draco along with her.

Peals of laughter came from the two lovers trying to steal time from a very dangerous, exhausting and seemingly hopeless reality.

They have never been this carefree in a long time.

_Running in a field of brown, laughing, rolling on the ground now _

_Smiling as she pulls you down _

Ginny wrapped her around him and looked into his eyes, "I've missed you so." She said it simply and sincerely.

Draco tenderly traced her lips with his finger and looks at her longingly, "I know, I've missed you, too." He went to lie on his back and stared at the endless sky above. The horrors of the past year beginning to stir in his mind, but he told himself he would have none of those today. Yet he found himself telling the woman he loved, "You're the only one who kept me sane in the camp."

She curled her body towards him and put her head on his chest, feeling and hearing the strong sound of Draco's heartbeat, hoping to hear it call her name. "I know, love," she whispered. That's how I feel, too. You're the only person who kept me going. Your letters are the only ones I live for each day. I worry myself to death whenever the sun has gone down and not a single note from you."

Draco sighed and caressed her fiery hair. He loved the feel of her hair on his hand. "What's to become of us? I'm getting weary everyday."

Ginny looked up and brought a finger to his lips, "Hush. We should not think about those things right now. We have time to worry about that when we've gone back to our separate lives. Let's think about ourselves just this once."

She leaned and pressed her lips on his. And she felt fire. She gave with so much ardor, knowing how much he needed her. Draco gave just as much. They draw strength from one another.

When they broke apart, Ginny smiled at him contentedly.

"Come," Ginny stood up and inclined her head, willing Draco to follow her.

He stood up and caught up with her. There was no need for words.

The sun was setting, any minute now and the darkness would fall. But in the middle of a world full of turmoil and hate, love and passion still burned bright.

Ginny made her way to the other side of the hill, where there was an abandoned cottage they could spend the night in. She knew Draco would be unwelcome in her quarters, she was sure of that. And they must be careful not to be seen together. Finding the cottage was a blessing for these two lovers.

When they were safely inside the cottage, Ginny sat on the small bed and looked at him with her big brown eyes, "I found this one day when I had free time to roam around. I could not think of anywhere else for us to go. No one lives here anymore. This is ours now. Our love is safe here."

"Oh Gin," Draco smiled and sat beside her, locking her in an intimate embrace, "you didn't really need to. All this effort…"

"I want to spend the night with you," she told him simply.

At that moment, Draco felt his mark burn. And now anxiety coursed through him. He ran his fingers through his hair, "Ginny, I can't. Any moment now, they would call."

But she was insistent. "How much time?"

"I can't say," Draco said, worried that they may not have enough time to spend for the more intimate moments they have looked forward to over the year that they have been apart.

And the mark burned once more. Draco fought not to wince, but Ginny saw it in his eyes.

She tugged on his robes until she saw the Dark Mark on his forearm. She saw how it became more vivid, saw how it became darker.

"They are calling you. If only I could buy more time for you, I would. I love you, Draco," she leaned towards him, "there is nothing I wouldn't do for you."

Draco gently held her face towards him and kissed her.

Damned be the Death Eaters. Damn the war.

In their little cottage, the lovers forged a world that was theirs alone. A world where there was no war, no famine, no mourning.

They didn't need to tell one another what they want. They just knew.

Tonight they would gladly give.

_That's the way she feels about you _

_That's the way she feels about you_

_---_

This is the first of three parts. Please read and review! I live for your reactions and comments.


	2. Who You Are, Where You've Been

**Chapter 2: Who You Are, Where You've Been**

_If your dreams should wake you shaking in the night _

_She can touch your face and take away all fright _

As Ginny slept peacefully in his arms, Draco stared at the ceiling, remembering the conversation he had with his friend.

"_I will be back in a few hou –," Draco headed out the door of Blaise Zabini's office._

"_How long?" Blaise followed him to one of the secret passageways of the headquarters._

"_Just a few hours, Blaise," he replied nonchalantly, without looking back, his steps growing more hurriedly._

_But Blaise was insistent and kept on, "How long, Draco, and where to?"_

"_Five," Draco was annoyed, but to just get Blaise off his case he answered, "no, make it six." He stopped and turned to look at his friend, "I'm going to her."_

_Blaise looked at his friend, wide-eyed and appalled, "Are you mad? You're gonna get yourself killed out there, all the people she hangs about with. How sure are you that you're gonna get back in one piece?" he ran his fingers through his hair, "How can you be sure she's not a spy? After all the letters you exchanged?"_

_Yes, Blaise knew about the relationship. He was the only sane person in their headquarters that Draco talked to. The only one he trusted with his life. A year before, he had two best friends. Now only Blaise was left._

"_She will not betray me," Draco replied matter-of-factly. _

"_Look," Blaise said, "you don't want you to end up like Theodore, after all his… his… gamboling around with that Parvati Patil. I sure don't want you to end up like him when anyone finds out about you and the weasel girl. If you are not here in six hours, I will find you, before anyone notice anything amiss. The Dark Lord will be here at midnight, you should be back by then."_

_Draco nodded, "Six hours. I will be back. You're a good friend Blaise."_

"_Alright then," Blaise inclined his head, "enjoy yourself. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."_

Draco was roused from his thoughts when he felt Ginny stir and heard her soft snores. He looked at her and thought about how lucky he was to have her love. He was not sure how many hours more he had left – two, or three perhaps – but he was sure he still had enough time for a little nap. He buried his face in Ginny's hair and fell into a slumber. But it was not a peaceful one…

_Like a tree in a meadow wind she will bend to take you in _

_Makes no difference where you been _

"_Father, don't make me do it," Draco stated simply, his gray eyes dull as he looked at his father, but deep inside his heart was burning in anger._

_There were seven people in the dungeon – Draco, his father, Blaise, Pansy, Flint and Crabbe were all standing in a cirle. And one Theodore Nott, in the middle, fallen, disgraced and defeated._

_Lucius Malfoy raised his eyebrow, "Are you starting to lose spine, my son?" an unpleasant sneer formed on his lips as he mocked his son. "Tut tut, then maybe, your other friend should have it." He pointed his wand at Blaise, who was shocked at what Lucius was about to do, "Avada ,"_

"_Mr. Malfoy!" Pansy shrieked, her eyes wide and horrorstruck, "It's Theo who's supposed to die!"_

_Lucius stopped and hissed, "I know, dear, but seeing my son needs to grow spine…"_

"_I will do it, father," was all Draco said, his eyes wandering at Blaise and Theodore. Blaise looked relieved yet troubled and Theodore just stared at him blankly._

"_You are a traitor, Theodore," Draco told his friend, "and now you have to die." He raised his wand and pointed it at Theodore Nott, a childhood friend. A loyal friend._

_But before Draco could mutter the words, Avada Kedavra, Theodore looked him in the eye and said calmly, "It's aright, Draco. But I'll have you know I was never a traitor to myself and to the woman I love. When you found someone to give your love to, death is nothing but a passage to a lifetime of togetherness. You have been a good friend, Draco," and he looked at Blaise, "you too, Blaise. We will see each other again and live better days."_

"_Goodbye, Theodore," and then Draco muttered the unforgivable curse and green light emanated in the room._

_Theodore Nott was no more._

_Visions of fighting, people dying running in flashes before his eyes. Death… death… death…_

Ginny was awakened by Draco's moaning and sobbing. Quickly she tried shaking him awake, "Draco, wake up. Please, wake up, darling please."

"Aaaaah!" Draco screamed and he sat up in bed, as the memory of Theo's death haunted his dreams once more, sweat forming on his forehead. He panted and covered his face with his hands.

"It's alright, shhhh, it's alright," Ginny said softly, running her fingers tenderly through his platinum hair. "Here," she said, taking his hands away from his face and covering his face with kisses.

Draco threw his arms around her and buried his face in her neck and lost himself in Ginny's scent, her arms, and her love. She was all he needed.

Ginny welcomed him into her arms. If she could only give him all the strength she possessed, she would. She held him tighter than she ever had.

When she felt his heart beat back to normal, and he finally calmed down, she asked, "What was about it? Would you like to talk about it?"

Draco disentangled himself from Ginny's embrace and looked far away. "No Gin, not tonight. Not yet."

Just then a green smoke started to fill in the room and formed into a shape of a serpent. It gave a soft, deathly hissing sound before vanishing.

"I have to go." Draco stood up and began to put his clothes back on. Ginny sat on the small bed and watched him.

"Please stay," she begged him with her eyes. "Please stay longer."

"I can't Gin," he replied as he finally put on his robe. "I have a lot of things to do, duties to fulfill, people to kill –," he suddenly stopped and looked at Ginny, "You know who I am and what I do."

Ginny nodded and kept silent.

"I will see you again, and soon." Draco kissed her goodbye and started to head out the door.

But before Draco could step out into the night, Ginny called out to him.

"I love you, Draco. It doesn't matter who you were before or who you are now. It doesn't matter what kind of life you live and what values you keep. I won't force you to believe in my cause, I don't care if you keep on fighting for your cause. But please come back tomorrow."

_That's the way she feels about you _

_That's the way she feels about you_

_ -_

I live for your feedback. Please review. - Xenia Maria


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